Encana (ECA) Stock Lower Ahead of Earnings Release

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Encana (ECA) shares are falling ahead of the release of the oil company's first quarter earnings report before the opening bell tomorrow as oil prices slide in trading today following comments from OPEC suggesting that a return to $100 per barrel oil is not feasible in the next 10 years.

Analysts are expecting Encana to report a first quarter net loss of 9 cents per share, a significant drop from the 70 cents per share it reported earning in the year ago period, on revenue of $1.2 billion.

Crude prices have rallied over 40% from its lows in recent weeks as the rise in global supplies have tapered over the past few months.

Analysts at Baker Hughes (BHI) recently noted that while oil rig counts continue to fall to multi-year lows, the pace of the decline has slowed as prices have recovered.

Separately, today OPEC said that it does not expect oil to trade above $100 a barrel anytime within the next decade and sees oil prices hovering around the $76 per barrel range by 2025, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Industry standard Brent crude for June delivery is down 0.63%, or 41 cents, to $64.98 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas crude is down 0.57%, or 34 cents, to $59.05 per barrel in trading today.

TheStreet Ratings team rates ENCANA CORP as a Hold with a ratings score of C. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation: